Rebel Rebel Records Top 5

May 26, 2013

This weeks Top 5 by David Shebiro of Rebel Rebel Records

Laura Marling / Once I Was An Eagle “But her voice is the headliner: Miked so close you can smell the cigarettes on her breath, it’s sultry, wise, rueful and unapologetic, connecting a 1960s singer-songwriter tradition to the ache of the now.” writes Will Hermes in Rolling Stone.

The National / Trouble Will Find Me “Beringer’s vocals are deeper and richer than ever, as well as more tuneful and elegant. The National’s dirty secret is that for all of the Dessner brothers’ orchestral ambitions, these songs are simple things: Instantly memorable melodies and minimal chord progressions become familiar after one listen, and then there’s a pivot, usually undetectable the first time around, that takes the National towards one of their proprietary grand finales. The greatness lies in when the listener connects the two and realizes they’re part of the same song.” from Ian Cohen’s review in Pitchfork. (Rating 8.4/10)

Daft Punk / Random Access Memories “By assembling a cast of their favourite musicians and delving into their adolescent memories, Daft Punk have created something as emotionally honest as any singer-songwriter confessional – and a lot more fun to dance to. Go out and rejoice: there’s something new under the sun.” Kevin EG Perry for NME (10/10)

MS MR / Secondhand Rapture “With this full-length, MS MR have crafted a collection of glossy dirges and high-drama doom-dances that operate in the pop world, but aren’t entirely of that world. Rather than neon synths and guitar crunch buttressing the melodies, it’s strings and pianos — but not in the Lana Del Way. Instead, MS MR opt for beauty through weirdness, constructing a record full of spectral echoes, wobbling organs and orchestral maneuvers in the dark.” Karl Williott for Idolator (4/5)

Vampire Weekend / Modern Vampires of the City “Modern Vampires of the City represents yet another giant leap forward for the band, sonically, musically and thematically. Loaded with organs, ghostly choirs and the pervasive chords of an upright piano; filled with references to age, religion, and death, it carries the aural grandeur and emotional heft you might expect from an Arcade Fire album. “In the past, I think a lot of our songs have had detours, surreal moments, vignettes,” Koenig recently told the New York Times. “I feel like every song on this album has a specific purpose.” Adam Offitzer for Pretty Much Amazing ( A )